Surely, you know the drill by now. In the waning weeks of August, just as the last days of the summer blockbuster season start giving way to the promise of the fall festivals, we here at IndieWire offer up a little throwback treat.
We launched with ’90s Week in 2022, went back in time with ’80s Week the following year, and naturally did the obvious thing the year after that by… jumping forward to focus on the aughts. As our own David Ehrlich wrote last week, we opted to mix things up (read: slide around the timeline in unexpected ways) because “the ’70s just seemed too vast — too robust — to contain within a few short days of lists, essays, interviews, and the like.”
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We feel ready now. Well, as ready as we’ll ever be.
Buckle up for IndieWire’s ‘70s Week, when we take the rebellious spirit that defined the era and turn it into five days of unexpected and original content. (And if you think we’re kidding about “Salo” Day, I promise, we really, really aren’t.)
Get ready for sharp and probing essays about everything from post-colonial African cinema and Meiko Kaji to the woman who wrote “Slap Shot” and the glories of Martin Scorsese’s misunderstood “New York, New York.” A star-studded tribute to the glory days of Roger Corman, featuring contributions from Scorsese himself, Robert De Niro, Joe Dante, and more of his most famous acolytes. Keith Carradine on making “Nashville.” Walter Hill on making “The Warriors.” Horror. Anime. The list(s) goes on.
Below, you’ll find a taste of the richness of ’70s Week goodness to come, which will update with links to our stories as they go live over the course of the week.
Monday, August 18
The 100 Best Movies of the 1970s
The Wave Broke: How the Movies of the Early 1970s Crystallized the Cynical Individualism of the “Me Decade,” by Jake Cole
The Roger Corman School of Filmmaking Remembered: Martin Scorsese, Ron Howard, Robert De Niro, and More on the B-Movie King, by Donald Liebsman
“Sholay” at 50: A Millennial Indian Critic Learns to Love a Timeless Bollywood Masterpiece, by Proma Khosla
Tuesday, August 19
The 30 Best Film Performances of the 1970s
Easy Does It: Keith Carradine looks back at his collaboration with Robert Altman on “McCabe & Mrs. Miller,” “Nashville,” and “Thieves Like Us”
Every Sucker for Himself: How “Slap Shot” Cut to the Soul of the American Character, by Vikram Murthi
On the ’70s’ Post-Colonial African Cinema, by Lovia Gurkye
Wednesday, August 20
The 25 Best Film Scores of the 1970s
Fierce Mothers: How Meiko Kaji and Pam Grier Birthed the Modern Action Heroine
Sorry, “Star Wars” — With “New York, New York,” Martin Scorsese Made the Best Movie of 1977, by Jim Hemphill
Juliet Mills Reframes Her Overlooked Billy Wilder Classic, “Avanti!,” by Rance Collins
Celebrating 50 Years of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show,” by Alison Foreman
Thursday, August 21 — ‘Saló Day’
The 10 Best Anime Movies of the 1970s, by Kambole Campbell
John Waters on “Saló, or the 120 Days of Sodom”
Bruce LaBruce on “Saló”
When “Salo” Was the Hottest Criterion DVD Money (Couldn’t) Buy, by Mike Ryan
The History of Coprophagia on Screen, by Alison Foreman
An Exclusive Excerpt from a Brand-New Book About “Saturday Night Fever,“ by Kate Erbland
Friday, August 22
The 10 Best Horror Movies of the 1970s, by Alison Foreman
Hollywood’s Leading Production Designers on Why the ’70s Is Hard to Get Right, by Sarah Shachat
“Star Wars” Hits the Oscars: When Hollywood Took Blockbusters Seriously, by Christian Blauvelt
Walter Hill Looks Back at “The Warriors,” by Jim Hemphill
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IndieWire’s ’70s Week is presented by Bleecker Street’s “RELAY.” Riz Ahmed plays a world class “fixer” who specializes in brokering lucrative payoffs between corrupt corporations and the individuals who threaten their ruin. IndieWire calls “RELAY” “sharp, fun, and smartly entertaining from its first scene to its final twist, ‘RELAY’ is a modern paranoid thriller that harkens back to the genre’s ’70s heyday.” From director David Mackenzie (“Hell or High Water”) and also starring Lily James, in theaters August 22.
